Lifestyles

How we met: Opposites attract when the quiet, studious girl captures the eye of the football player at a Spartan dance

By Martha Ross

Contra Costa Times

Posted:
07/31/2014 03:00:00 PM PDT

Updated:
08/01/2014 01:43:06 PM PDT

Sue Henry wasn't initially impressed the first time she met Dave Johnson, her future husband. In fact, she was wary enough that she gave him a fake name when he asked for her phone number.

In February 1964, Sue was an education major at San Jose State. Quiet and studious, she didn't go out much. But on a whim, she and her roommates decided to check out a dance the university was hosting at the Santa Clara County Fairgrounds.

True to her serious nature, Sue dressed in a straight black skirt and gray sweater and pulled her hair back into a French roll. It wasn't the kind of outfit, Sue realized, that was likely to attract much notice from young men.

But somehow she stood out to one of the Spartan football players who strutted into the dance. "They surveyed the room, turned to leave and then one player, who seemed like the leader of the pack, walked toward me," Sue recalled. "He pointed at me and said, 'I never leave a dance without dancing at least once, so will you dance with me?' "

Wondering "why me," Sue nonetheless accepted his offer. During two dances -- one fast, one slow -- they made small talk, including about the band. It was a swing group that played throughout Northern California. Sue had heard the band before and liked them, but the football player thought their sounds were not the "hippest thing."

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If Sue wasn't too sure about this "cocky" football player, the doubts seemed to be mutual. "From his reaction, he thought I was square," Sue said. When introducing himself, he also gave a name she would later learn was fake: "Harold."

But "Harold" surprised her by asking for her phone number. She gave it to him, while likewise providing him with the pseudonym "Mary."

He surprised her even more by calling the next day from a phone booth to ask for a date. They laughed through the movies and through pizza. And then "Harold" made a confession. His real name was Dave, but he said he introduced himself as "Harold" because he thought it sounded more "square," more like the kind of name that would impress a serious girl like her.

"That's OK," said Sue, who admitted she wasn't really "Mary."

Although "Harold and Mary" had a wonderful time on their first date, Sue didn't immediately hear from Dave. After waiting weeks for a call, she decided that it was time for "this conservative girl to go into action." Back then, she could go to the registrar's office and learn his schedule. Early one morning, dressed in a bright orange skirt and sweater and with her hair hanging loose, Sue "accidentally" ran into Dave on campus, near his 7:30 a.m. class.

"It worked!" she said. He walked with her across campus, and more dates followed. A year and a half later, they were engaged and then married at a Methodist church in Campbell on Aug. 13, 1966.

Unfortunately, Dave's football career effectively ended when he broke his arm during a game soon after he and Sue started dating. Although he was drafted by the Baltimore Colts, the team decided his arm would never heal well enough to play professionally.

As it turns out, Dave, a physical education major, became a teacher, athletic director and head football coach for Campbell High School. Sue taught first through third grades for Castlemont Elementary, taking time off to raise their three kids in their Saratoga home.

"We've been happily married since August 1966," said Sue. "In February 1964, I made a decision that changed my life forever. Going to that dance was the best decision I made."

-- Martha Ross, Staff

If you want to share the story of how you and your partner or best friend met, send an email to mross@bayareanewsgroup.com with the subject line "how we met."